Seeds & Weeds
It is simply astonishing what two weeks of neglect can do to a flower garden. Not that my flowers are award winning in any fashion, but I just cannot believe that after a week of VBS and especially in the week away how overgrown things have become. Those nasty giant Dandelions (not to be confused with the precious ‘Lion Flowers’ in the grass as my baby used to call them) are as tall as my Zinnias and crab grass is choking out my Snapdragons. There is also something unidentifiable in the pot which my leggy Pansies used to dwell. In the back yard a vine I planted seeds for last summer has finally creeped up the lattice around the propane tank….and a plant that I thought was Lambs ear that I found in the woods looks like it got angry and turned into The Hulk. It’s called Mullen and while it has medicinal uses it’s really just a weed. Cool.
Why can’t the flora we plant with purpose, that we tend with such loving care, grow as lavishly as the weeds!? I don’t have an answer to the question…but as is typical of my trade, I do have some theological allegory to impart. Our faith is much like the garden. It takes focused attention, tending, and work—most things of value are like that. Perhaps this is why for many folks, the roots of their faith don’t go very deep…its just too much effort. In order for our understanding to deepen of God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit at work in our daily walking-around lives, we have to continue seeking, learning, and worshiping.
For example, we send our children to school at a young age and we teach them the alphabet. What if we just stopped there, if we didn’t explain how letters make sounds and sounds pushed together make words and words strung together make sentences…. The way our children are taught about Noah’s Ark is very different than the way we might learn about it as adults—the meaning of the narrative deepens as we learn about the historical and literary context from which the story comes. To glean such knowledge takes considerable effort. But the harvest is rich with color and texture.
Similarly, we know that the dastardly weeds of the world are determined to choke out our beautiful witness! If we aren’t vigilant those weeds of such destruction will consume us. The roots of every “-ism” from racism to elitism threaten to strip the soil of all good nutrients. Grasses of greed, pride, covetousness, and hatred grow tall, block the sun, and steal the nourishing rains. Remember, just because it’s green doesn’t mean it’s good. How many “Christians” talk a good talk but do not walk Christ’s walk? Be attentive to your garden! What are you planting? What are you cultivating? And what do you need to rip out?